lafarwell

We are flying into Madrid 3 days prior to a wine tasting river cruise in Bordeaux. We would like to visit Barcelona and the Basque country on our way to Bordeaux. Do you have any suggestions of places we should stop and stay along the way?

bilboburgler

Madrid to Basque or Madrid to Barcelona not both. Too much to do and not enough time. Note that both areas are wine producing.

Which month?

nytraveler

If you want to visit Barcelona then why fly into Madrid instead of straight into Barcelona - esp given your very limited time?

Bedar

Forget Barcelona. It's too much out of the way. You should go thu Burgos on up to Bilbao and San Sebastian, on to Biarritz and St. Jean de Luz to Bordeaux. Get a map to trace the route.

hetismij2

Have you checked you can take a hire car from Spain to France? If you are able to do so have you established what if any one way drop off fee there will be?

lafarwell

Yes we have reserved a car through SixT at a reasonable rate. We did already decide to skip Barcelona and head up from Madrid to Bordeaux. We are thinking of stopping in Valladolid, then on to San Sebastian stopping in Bilbao. Then from San Sebastian to Bayonne for a night and then onto Bordeaux. Any suggestions of what to add or drop from our proposed itinerary are appreciated! Thanks!

lafarwell

The month is end of June.

lafarwell

Also, should we skip Valladolid and go through Burgos instead?

lafarwell

Just saw images of Burgos....definitely skipping Valladolid and spending the night in Burgos instead. Thanks Bedar for the suggestion!

aliced

Agree that this is way too much territory-- on the river cruise over a full week, believe you're only going 30 miles down river to Cadillac then back up past Bordeaux 30 miles to Pauillac (sp?). Better to take that week, drive to Barcelona and Basque, and spend 3 days in Bordeaux. Really. But, regardless if you stick with departure point from Madrid, then skip Barcelona and follow Bedar's advice above. If you are comfortable driving the distance from Barcelona thru Basque, then driving up to St. Emilion, Medoc and points thereabout will be a drop in the bucket. You can arrange tours while staying in Bordeaux. We looked at probably same river cruise last year, and realized it doesn't even touch the Dordogne area. Cruises are great ways to reach those places not easily accessible otherwise. France and Spain are not amongst them IMHO.

Robert2533

If you haven't already bought your tickets, you should consider flying into Bilbao and pick up the car there. San Sebasitan-Donostia is about a 3-hour drive from Bordeaux. Otherwise you'll only be doing a three-day road trip, Madrid to Bordeaux, with two nights on the road.

The Ribera del Douro is a major wine producing region, Burgos being only one small part. You could easily spend three days there.

There is also great wine touring in the Basque country, around Getaria (see: Following the Route of the Txakolina) and the Rioja Alavesa (see: Savoring the Food and Wine of the Rioja).

Michael

<i> Then from San Sebastian to Bayonne for a night and then onto Bordeaux.</i>

The drive from Bayonne to Bordeaux is not very representative of the pays Basque and is generally in flat land and uninteresting. I would drop the car off in San Sebastian and take the local train to Hendaye and the train from Hendaye to Bordeaux.

ribeirasacra

The road between France and Spain is now tolled so expect to pay a fee for the privilege of using the road.

A reasonable rate for one is not for another.For the interest of others on this forum maybe post what class of car and costs because we often read of other members wanting to hire in one country and drop off in another.